# Oh My God, Wash Your Hands! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 27, 2006, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362 "2006-09-27T14:42:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/61 "2006-09-27T20:56:52Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I wash my hands every time I piss on them, which is rare. Other than that, it’s really no one else’s business and I don’t feel any particular obligation to pander to other people’s phobia’s. How do you people even function when you’re going around obsessing about doorknobs all day… [/QUOTE] Obsessing about doorknobs is one thing. Not washing your hands after using the bathroom is another. The former is silly, the latter makes you a pig. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/62 "2006-09-27T20:58:15Z")
[QUOTE=RickJay] Obsessing about doorknobs is one thing. Not washing your hands after using the bathroom is another. The former is silly, the latter makes you a pig. [/QUOTE] Why? ---
**Author:** ![Carlyjay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Carlyjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carlyjay)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/63 "2006-09-27T21:03:25Z")
[QUOTE=Bippy the Beardless] Well people put food in their mouths, less so with doorknobs. [/QUOTE] Maybe for YOU. Ever tried doorknob on rye? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/64 "2006-09-27T21:07:05Z")
I’d eat a knob at night. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/65 "2006-09-27T21:12:51Z")
Even if you didn’t get your hands dirty in the bathroom itself, you’ve most likely been touching many other things that do have bacteria on them, and the bathroom is a particularly convenient place to wash your hands, since there are, y’know, sinks and soap and stuff in there. Handwashing is probably the single best way to reduce the spread of communicable diseases. From the CDC: [Why is handwashing important?](http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/r2k0306c.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Carlyjay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Carlyjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carlyjay)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/66 "2006-09-27T21:23:18Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] If I wasn’t transporting anything when I went into the bathroom, why would I be transporting anything when I left? [/QUOTE] Because your skin, particularly the skin covered up by your underwear, is a breeding ground for various bacteria. I’ve linked to several sites so far in my past few posts that might give you some examples. These bacteria can cause various health problems for the average person. Hence, wash your hands. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/67 "2006-09-27T21:26:35Z")
[QUOTE=Carlyjay] Because your skin, particularly the skin covered up by your underwear, is a breeding ground for various bacteria. I’ve linked to several sites so far in my past few posts that might give you some examples. These bacteria can cause various health problems for the average person. Hence, wash your hands. [/QUOTE] What if I didn’t touch my junk? ---
**Author:** ![Carlyjay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Carlyjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carlyjay)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/68 "2006-09-27T21:30:48Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] What if I didn’t touch my junk? [/QUOTE] How’d you get it out of your pants? Or were you wearing a skirt? Actually, this really interests me. Honestly, how would you go about taking a leak, as a man, without touching yourself below the belt _at all_? Do you aim? Do you lean? If so, do you brace yourself against the wall? Or do you let the urine fall where it may? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/69 "2006-09-27T21:34:56Z")
[QUOTE=Carlyjay] How’d you get it out of your pants? Or were you wearing a skirt? Actually, this really interests me. Honestly, how would you go about taking a leak, as a man, without touching yourself below the belt _at all_? Do you aim? Do you lean? If so, do you brace yourself against the wall? Or do you let the urine fall where it may? [/QUOTE] It’s pretty easy. You unzip, you lean forward, and gravity does the rest. You don’t have to touch anything but your pants. ---
**Author:** ![Stalky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@Stalky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stalky)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/70 "2006-09-27T21:43:21Z")
[QUOTE=Carlyjay] How’d you get it out of your pants? Or were you wearing a skirt? Actually, this really interests me. Honestly, how would you go about taking a leak, as a man, without touching yourself below the belt _at all_? Do you aim? Do you lean? If so, do you brace yourself against the wall? Or do you let the urine fall where it may? [/QUOTE] When you unzip the front of the pants comes down low enough that most guys who are not morbidly obese can, with a little practice, get willy to appear of his own voilition. He does most/all of the aiming and when finished is shaken by a wiggle of the hips. Afterwards an upwards tug on the top of the pant-front accompanied by a receding motion of the hips will usually be enough to return little william to his place. One need only touch the fabric at the top on either side of the zipper and the zipper itself in order to urinate. Not that I don’t wash my hands at every opportunity. I work as a mail-man and, during flu season especially, I take every opportunity to wash. I never know where the stuff i touched has been. Viruses can survive extreme temps and dry for significant periods of time. Better safe then sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Waenara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/50afbb/32.png) [@Waenara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waenara)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/71 "2006-09-27T22:01:24Z")
For those who’ve said that they would like some cites that handwashing reduces the spread of infection, I found two cites that show a reduction in respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. [**This study**](http://www.jr2.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/band91/b91-4.html) on handwashing and the spread of respiratory illnesses: > [@](#): > > Weekly rates of illness were compared for the year before and two years after introduction of the programme. A control group of advanced students on the same base but not in the programme was used. > > A stratified random sample of recruits was chosen at the end of basic training to answer a questionnaire on handwashing, respiratory symptoms, use of medical resources and time lost through illness. > > _\_ > > The number of outpatient visits because of respiratory illness fell by about half for recruits in 1997 and 1998 after introducing the handwashing programme. Control advanced students saw no change in their lower rate of respiratory illness (Figure 1). > > _\_ > > More than 99% of 1445 recruits filled in the anonymous questionnaire. It showed that only about half washed their hands five times a day, with about 40% washing three to five times a day and 12% washing their hands fewer than three times a day. Frequent handwashers had less self-reported respiratory illness (3.2 episodes per recruit) than infrequent handwashers (4.7 episodes per recruit); the odds ratio was 1.5 (95% confidence interval 1.2 to 2.8). Infrequent handwashers had significantly more hospital admissions; the odds ratio was 11 (95% confidence interval 2.7 to 46). [**This study**](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=9165286) in an elementary school shows handwashing reduces rates of gastrointestinal infections: > [@](#): > > RESULTS: Of the 37 school days examined, children in the hand-washing group were absent fewer days than the control group due to all acute communicable illness (relative risk = .75). There were less days of absence due to gastrointestinal symptoms (relative risk = .43). The difference in absence due to respiratory symptoms was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: A scheduled hand-washing program will reduce acute communicable (gastrointestinal) illnesses in elementary school-age children. ---
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/72 "2006-09-27T22:06:11Z")
OK, little followup TMI here: My wife gets squicked by the idea of willy’s germs flying willy-nilly, but sometimes when you’re out in the woods (we’re avid hikers), you just gotta go. Generally we bring those little packets of moistened antiseptic buttwipes (as I like to call them), and even if I’m just taking a leak, I’m expected to use one to clean my hands. We have forgotten the buttwipes, on occasion, though. So I just whip it out hands-free, and tuck it back in again after bouncing up and down a bit to shake off any last drops. Awkward, but works. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/73 "2006-09-27T22:18:31Z")
[QUOTE=Waenara] For those who’ve said that they would like some cites that handwashing reduces the spread of infection, I found two cites that show a reduction in respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. [**This study**](http://www.jr2.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/band91/b91-4.html) on handwashing and the spread of respiratory illnesses: [**This study**](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=9165286) in an elementary school shows handwashing reduces rates of gastrointestinal infections: [/QUOTE] What I wanted was not a cite about handwashing in general, but a cite that it makes any difference if you do it after taking a hands free piss. In other words, how does walking into a bathroom make your hands any _more_ dirty? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/74 "2006-09-27T22:24:48Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] how does walking into a bathroom make your hands any _more_ dirty? [/QUOTE] If anyone took a shit recently, you’re bound to encounter some airborne fecal matter. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/75 "2006-09-27T22:29:14Z")
[QUOTE=Carlyjay] Furthermore, I’m bewildered by the people who agree that one should wash one’s hands before handling food because THAT spreads diseases, but they can’t comprehend how it may spread diseases on doorknobs and such. 😕 [/QUOTE] As I said earlier, doorknobs and such aren’t exactly hotbeds for bacteria. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/76 "2006-09-27T22:33:24Z")
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher] airborne fecal matter. [/QUOTE] uh… band name? ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/77 "2006-09-27T22:37:10Z")
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher] If anyone took a shit recently, you’re bound to encounter some airborne fecal matter. [/QUOTE] On every surface of your body, yet we don’t go through a decontamination shower after each restroom break. That said, washing your hands is always a good idea (unless taken to insane extremes) and doing it after a restroom break is as good as any other time. Also noone argues that washing after a bowel movement isn’t a hygenic necessity. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/78 "2006-09-27T22:39:58Z")
[QUOTE=Bippy the Beardless] On every surface of your body, yet we don’t go through a decontamination shower after each restroom break. [/QUOTE] Which wouldn’t be practical, anyway. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![mischievous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mischievous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mischievous)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/79 "2006-09-27T22:48:32Z")
[QUOTE=Carlyjay] Well that’s cool, but what about the less immune-strong person who touches the doorknob after you? [/QUOTE] My point was that not washing my hands doesn’t seem to have killed me yet, even though I’m exposed to the dreaded crotch cooties. > [@Anaamika](#): > > Adjust my cleavage?\It is to laugh. I don’t know how large you are, but I’m big and soft enough that my breasts frequently try to escape from bondage. This requires cleavage adjustment for the comfort and safety of all passers-by. **Waenara** , those are actually interesting cites. I’m not sure how relevant the one in pre-school children is, since I think we all agree that pre-schoolers have a high tendency to have appalling crap on their hands at a higher rate than adults. The military cite is interesting and statistically significant, but you’ll note that the change in **minor** respiratory disease is (self-reported) as 3 instances per 2 years vs. 4 instances per 2 years, with no difference in lost time at work, which is not exactly a shocking level of change. There was absolutely no change in **serious** respiratory illness between the control group and the recruits directed to wash their hands. While it does seem that there was a small drop in minor respiratory illness connected with hand-washing, my suspicious mind wonders if military recruits are less likely to seek treatment (or self-report) for minor colds after their superiors give them orders to avoid getting colds. Also, it doesn’t address the issue of handwashing as connected with going to the bathroom. mischievous ---
**Author:** ![Hogwash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e57/32.png) [@Hogwash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hogwash)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2006, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362/80 "2006-09-27T22:55:14Z")
> **[BBC NEWS | Health | Lifting the lid on computer filth](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3505414.stm)** > > There are more germs on the average computer keyboard than on toilet seats, research shows. By all accounts, **Carlyjay** , you should be more demanding that boyfriends wash their hands after using the phone at work than teasing out their peckers to take a piss. If you think about it, the amount of harmful bacteria on a dick shaft (something that is washed in the morning and then hidden away for most of the day) should be negligible compared with the variety of filth that comes into contact with your exposed parts, hands and face in particular, throughout the average day. Furthermore, if the ‘skin covered by underwear’ zone is as dirty as you posit, why are toilet seats so surprisingly free of bacteria when compared to other objects? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-my-god-wash-your-hands/374362.md?page=5)